sdm pulse

Recommendations

Info

8 sdmpulse fall 2015 sdm.mit.edu About the Authors Assessing Regulatory, Environmental, Economic, and Technical Components of Sustainable Energy and Water Use in Thermoelectric Facilities in Chile Donny Holaschutz, SDM alumnus and cofounder of the energy and sustainability consultancy inodú, is a seasoned entrepreneur with experience in both for- and not-forprofit ventures related to energy and sustainability. He has consulted for startups, Fortune 500 companies, and government agencies in the United States and Latin America. He holds a master’s degree in engineering and management from MIT and bachelor’s and master’s degrees in aerospace engineering from the University of Texas at Austin. Editor’s note: The following is a summary of a study performed for the Chilean Energy Ministry with the support of the Ministry of the Environment. The authors would like to thank the Chilean Energy Ministry and Ministry of the Environment for supporting this project. The challenge: Water use at thermoelectric facilities presents a complex systems problem for several reasons: • To operate safely and efficiently, the facilities need large amounts of water, yet water supplies are limited; • The social and environmental impacts of water use are becoming increasingly significant worldwide; and • A complex set of relationships exists among the overall environmental, economic, and social impacts of water use; how water is withdrawn from its source; how it is used at facilities; and how it is returned to the environment. The most significant water use at a thermoelectric facility is associated with the cooling process, which in turn is tightly coupled to the overall performance and reliability of the plant. An adequate amount of water for the plant’s cooling system leads to a more energy-efficient thermoelectric facility—one that produces less atmospheric emissions per unit of electricity generated. This relationship creates an important tension in the design or upgrade of a plant’s cooling system between water use and performance. Any cooling system design must consider a variety of factors, including: • local environmental conditions and geography, including access to and availability of water; • the ecosystems of the source body of water; • local social context; and Jorge Moreno, SDM alumnus and inodú cofounder, has extensive experience in the energy industry in the United States and Latin America. He holds a master’s degree in engineering and management from MIT and bachelor’s and master’s degrees in electrical engineering from the Pontificia Universidad Católica de Chile. • how specific system byproducts—such as water flow at the intake and the temperature of the water effluent—might stress the source body of water. Inodú worked with the Chilean Energy Ministry and the Ministry of the Environment to identify and address some of the challenges posed by water use at thermoelectric facilities in Chile by conducting a preliminary assessment of the current regulatory, environmental, economic, and technical situation. This assessment helped address the following goals presented in the Chilean Energy Ministry’s Energy Agenda: • supporting the sustainable development of thermoelectric generation projects;
9 • making progress toward overall territorial regulations focused on efficiency and sustainability; and • promoting energy efficiency as a state policy. The approach: Inodú used an integrated set of methodologies grounded in systems thinking to elaborate its analysis. First, we conducted an extensive literature review to gather facts and gain an understanding of the research, analysis, and regulation developed worldwide. Inodú found that in Chile most thermoelectric generation facilities are located by the coast, while in the United States, according to the Environmental Protection Agency, only 3 percent of power plants use ocean water. This indicated that solutions being developed for the United States might not necessarily apply to Chile. Next, we engaged key Chilean stakeholders to gain a better understanding of how water is currently used and what solutions might be available. The stakeholders included: • cooling system technology providers; • thermoelectric facility technology providers; • construction companies; and • local generation companies. Inodú also conducted a survey to calculate the potential for water withdrawal by the thermoelectric generation base. In Chile in 2013, the potential for water withdrawal from the Pacific Ocean was 530,400 cubic meters per hour (m 3 /hr) by thermoelectric facilities, the equivalent of withdrawing approximately 212 Olympic-size pools every hour* (see Figure 1). The potential for water withdrawal from water wells was 3,080 m 3 /hr. continued on page 10 m 3 /hr Groundwater 3,080 Water Wells 3,080 m 3 /hr Coastline 35,000 17,909 Pacific Ocean 530,434 Siphon 495,434 246,500 6,000 Water Source Consumption 3% Other Uses 5% Water Intake Type Open System 3 (m /hr) Closed System 3 (m /hr) 59,400 Chile 103,800 2,600 420 Discharged Water 97% Cooling Water 95% 96,800 Discharge Water Uses in the Power Plant Figure 1. The water cycle is shown at left for Chile’s thermoelectric facilities, marked on the map at right. * 2,500 m 3 is a value commonly quoted for the volume of an Olympic-size pool.
Page 1 and 2: vol. 10, no. 2 fall 2015 The newsle
Page 3 and 4: 3 About the Author A Systems Approa
Page 5 and 6: 5 Enduring Challenges in Tactical I
Page 7: 7 as the analyst’s ability to app
Page 11 and 12: 11 Single Entry/Exit Traveling 1 Do
Page 13 and 14: 13 provided access to users and man
Page 15 and 16: 15 6. Improve the process(es) or in
Page 17 and 18: 17 • creating a baseline scope fo
Page 19 and 20: 19 Spring 2015 SDM Tech Trek Report
Page 21 and 22: 21 • Jake Whitcomb SDM ’12 arra
Page 23 and 24: 23 MIT Integrated Design & Manageme
Page 25 and 26: 25 Employment Report: 2014 SDM Grad
Page 27 and 28: 27 Conference sdm SDM Conference Ce

sdm pulse

You also want an ePaper? Increase the reach of your titles

Delete template?

Save as template?